"Will you shut up, man?" US Politics October 2020

Are you sure it was him? Because I found myself reading some Tim Alberta thing on the subject this morning, and it seemed excessively detailed.

― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, October 13, 2020

I read the same thing.

So what happens if the Dems have the house, get the WH, but fall short in the senate? Four years of nothing, extra bullshit and/or rancor?

Federal courts with literally zero judges as Mitch McConnell continues to execute the responsibilities the Founders whispered in his ear

One yard sign indicator that I take as good is that when I drove through North Philly in 2016 I saw very very few Hillary signs, certainly compared to all the Obama signs I saw there in '08 and '12. But this year there are a lot of Biden signs.

Pete does seem like one of the few prominent Dems who's at least CAPABLE of cutting through the layers of bullshit smarm that coat every facet of mainstream political discourse. his campaign was exceedingly terrible because as soon as he got the tiniest bit of national recognition he just completely overcorrected in the other direction and became Captain Restoring Norms

pete's hanging around so he can run again in 2024 or 2028, and meanwhile snag some position in the biden administration, like OMB chief or federal CTO or whatever.

Pete's perfect job in the new administration would be as volunteer to be hooked up to and communicate with whatever eldritch alien technology is sitting out in Area 51.

I despise Pete with such an intense passion that his continued presence as a living being makes my blood boil.

xps re the yard sign index:

I drove up to rural PA this weekend. Relatively few yard signs compared to a similar trip in 2016, when entire rural roads were just absolutely lined with Trump signs. Most of the signs I saw this time were for Trump, but there just weren't nearly as many of them. And there were a handful of Biden signs whereas in 2016 I saw none for Clinton.

I've probably mentioned before, but my neighborhood, which skews about 60/40 rep/dem, has had a major increase in Dem signs this year, while there were just none last time and a handful of bumper stickers.

I despise Pete with such an intense passion that his continued presence as a living being makes my blood boil.

Odds are he would respond to this with a rueful smile, a sad shake of his head, and a quick phone call to increase the costs of all of your staple foods by 500%

legit lol

speaking of rueful smiles:

I had to work harder on this than any other magazine piece I’ve written. But in the end it was among the most rewarding. https://t.co/jovMMHkWAP

— David Brooks (@nytdavidbrooks) October 11, 2020

Rueful smile or strained grunt?

Are you sure it was him? Because I found myself reading some Tim Alberta thing on the subject this morning, and it seemed excessively detailed.

― Ned Raggett

yep, definitely. it was on the WashPost's coverage of the hearings, while they were trying to fill time during a break. I immediately recognized him (i love his refusal to dress up or even wash his face before going on television, for real) and thought "hey that's dave weigel, a guy i've seen on twitter!")

maybe he read the same article you and alfred read, i suppose

cool!

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/va-politics/virginia-state-websites-shut-down/2020/10/13/8e4443d8-0d5d-11eb-b1e8-16b59b92b36d_story.html

speaking of rueful smiles:

I had to work harder on this than any other magazine piece I’ve written. But in the end it was among the most rewarding. https://t.co/jovMMHkWAP
— David Brooks (@nytdavidbrooks) October 11, 2020
― Patriotic Goiter (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, October 13, 2020 12:54 PM (three minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

lol does this mean he had to take like THREE people to a Brooklyn sandwich shop so he could shake his head ruefully at their ignorance of prosciutto?

Are you sure it was him? Because I found myself reading some Tim Alberta thing on the subject this morning, and it seemed excessively detailed.

Have Weigel and Alberta ever been seen in the same room?

with David Brooks and some good prosciutto.

Brooks has been doing a lot more of the, "Gosh, everything is so bad, how did it get this bad!" type of column, while occasionally making correct diagnoses. To be honest, it would be unnerving under normal circumstances, but that he refuses to accept that conservative policies and social mores are responsible for a majority of these societal ills makes it just another day for him.

Also, I know we should focus on the here and now, but I will honestly say that I will do anything I can to prevent a Buttigieg presidency.

I have the same criticism about Buttigieg! xpost

I spent part of the weekend hiking in north GA and you can probably guess what the yard sign sitch was on the drive up. One in particular did stand out though. It was the guy’s name (which escapes me rn), underneath that “Republican” and underneath that a silhouette of whatever assault rifle gets chuds the frothiest. In its own super special way I kind of appreciated it.

If I had the time, cash, & frankly the temerity I’d consider moving safely outside the 285 loop, running the same campaign. and if I were to win, legislating as a pro-gun socialist until being recalled (or more likely assassinated).

with David Brooks and some good prosciutto.

― Patriotic Goiter (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, October 13, 2020 12:03 PM (ten minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

what is this "pro-shoot-oh" you speak of? i went to a public university, sorry

My mom was telling me the other day about how much she likes David Brooks and appreciates his moral perspective. I held my tongue.

what is this "pro-shoot-oh" you speak of?

the chosen charcuterie of second amendment enthusiasts around the country

Meantime, remember this feeb?

Some quotes from Ronny Jackson, who was meant to pitch Biden's unfitness for office:

"I actually don't even practice medicine at this point."

"I literally had nothing to do with [Biden's] medical care at the White House."

"I'm not even remotely trying to diagnose him."

— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) October 13, 2020

(He's due to land in the House, GOP safe seat by all accounts, and I hope he's miserable there every day.)

I'm particularly fond of the Martha McSally signs I see: PROTECT OUR GUNS!

Wait no I think it's a Wendy Rogers sign

xpost I like the Brooks/Mark Shields roundup thing on the Friday PBS Newshour... I borrow soundbytes and employ them over the weekend to sound smart and connected.

I was so excited when I found out Trump's doctor was going to Congress and then I found out Ronny Jackson is NOT Dr. Longhair in the white lab coat, but a different Trump doctor

Dr Longhair's going on tour with the Doobie Brothers

Thought Dr. Longhair fixed him up with a satchel of gris-gris which was the real secret cure.

I like the Brooks/Mark Shields roundup thing on the Friday PBS Newshour...

My wife, who is disconnected from all social media and therefore is not up to speed on the web's hot takes about everything within minutes of it happening, finds that Brooks/Mark Shields roundup thing helpful for some ungodly reason, even though Shields is increasingly unable to finish a sentence without treating it like an obstacle course. I view it as a ten minute visit to the television equivalent of the Saharan Desert.

My wife, who is disconnected from all social media and therefore is not up to speed on the web's hot takes about everything within minutes of it happening

Your wife otfm

My brother trying to early vote in Texas. Dallas area. Blue district. Standing in line for literally 3 hours. Looks like another 2 ahead of him. An elderly lady literally fainted on the sidewalk and was carted away. Good work, guys.

Fuck

It’s good that people are voting despite all that.

Indeed they are, current numbers now up to 11.8 million. FWIW, total early voting in 2016 was 47 million and with three weeks to go that number will be surpassed easily enough; the question will be by how much.

Which makes Barrett's non-answer chilling if predictable:

WATCH: Senator @amyklobuchar just asked Judge Barrett whether it's illegal under federal law to intimidate voters at the polls.

Barrett refused to answer. Then Klobuchar read her the law. Astonishing. pic.twitter.com/cxoIaXTP9e

— Vanita Gupta (@vanitaguptaCR) October 13, 2020

This entire thing is such a charade.

Ugh

Bad news:

BREAKING: Supreme Court grants Trump administration requet to halt census count while litigation continues in the 9th circuit court of appeals

— Steven Mazie (@stevenmazie) October 13, 2020

Good news:

BREAKING: Nearly all eligible voters in Travis County are registered to vote this year.

A record 97% of the county’s estimated 850,000 eligible voters are registered https://t.co/L5ZE1mbZ5w

— Austin Statesman (@statesman) October 13, 2020

good job getting a Whataburger in the shot

Amy Coney Barrett literally will not say if the President should commit to the peaceful transfer of power.

— Elie Mystal (@ElieNYC) October 13, 2020

Surely this bodes well for our near future.

What could go wrong?

this is a sickening exchange. It's very fortunate that Trump's own ineptitude has probably finished him already, because it's no wonder at all that so many people came to hate the Democrats https://t.co/ox5uMIksON

— tom (@malaiseforever) October 13, 2020

Another Austin, TX voting update: went to a polling place with an estimated <10 minute waiting time, and proceeded to wait in a massive line for nearly 2 hours, but it's done now. A whole lot of people want to vote.

I have read leftists on ILX probably fifty times asserting that the Democrats are lame because they don't know how to negotiate. Instead they automatically cave in to the Republicans without gaining any concessions. These leftists assert that this is Democratic stupidity verging on the criminal, that people hate and despise the Democrats for this reason and further that it makes them indistinguishable from the Republicans, as aiders and abetters, inept, incompetent and, yes, sickening.

What happened this time?

The Republicans offered an aid bill aimed at giving massive breaks to businesses and a freaking pittance for the poor. When the Democrats didn't cave in, the Republicans sat on their hands, too. When the Democrats then reduced their offered aid package by a trillion dollars, the Republicans reduced their aid package, too, and have not budged an inch.

This is obviously all the fault of Nancy Pelosi. Don't blame poor Mitch McConnell. He's doing his best.

xp here is the whole 13 minute conversation

https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2020/10/13/nancy-pelosi-intv-stimulus-bill-trump-offer-coronavirus-tsr-vpx.cnn

Let it be noted that Wolf Blitzer is an ass and a fool.

and nobody would disagree with that. But if you aren't impressed with platitudes and bullshit - the rest is bad as well.

she's negotiating hard, I guess we'll see